All about Taiga Biome

 Taiga

Taiga is also known as boreal forest (Greek word means goddess of the North wind) is the largest biome in the world. It stretches over Eurasia and North America which includes Canada, Alaska, Sweden, Russia, Northern Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Japan with about 50 degrees N to 70 degrees N latitudes. It is located near the top of the world just below the tundra biome. It makes up 27% of the world’s forest. But even so, taiga doesn’t have many plant and animal species as the tropical or the deciduous forest biomes due to its temperature which is below freezing for six months out of the year. The winter range is -54°C to -1°C. Summer range is as low as -7°C (20°F), high in summer can be 21°C (70°F) very short with about 50 to 100 frost free days. Living here is said to be cold and lonely. Coldness and food shortages make things very difficult mostly in the winter. During summertime millions of insects migrated here because it’s warm, rainy, and humid and by then birds migrate also there every year to rest and feed.

            There are four main seasons here namely winter, summer, spring, and autumn. These seasons are short, it does not take long in which not many plants and animals can survive the extreme cold of winter. There are some lichens and mosses but most plants that can survive are coniferous trees like pine, white spruce, hemlock and douglas fair.

            There are also animals that can survive here like mammalian herbivores such as red deer (Cervus elaphus) in Europe, moose (Alces alces), beacer (Caston canadensis). Among birds which are insect or seed-eaters like finches and sparrows and a lot more this can survive to the extreme coldness here during winter.

            The longest growing season here in Taiga where the vegetation come alive ranges from 145-180 days while the shortest is from 50-70 days. Taiga experiences relatively low precipitation throughout the year, primarily as rain during the summer months, but also as fog and snow. As evaporation is also low for most of the year, precipitation exceeds evaporation and is sufficient to sustain the dense vegetation growth. Snow may remain on the ground for as long as nine months in the northernmost extensions of the taiga ecozone.

            

Taiga soil tends to be young and poor in nutrients. Its thinness is due to the cold, which hinders the development of soil and the ease with which plants can use its nutrients.



            
            By protecting this biome, many nations are taking care of it like prohibiting logging, mining, oil and gas production, and other forms of development. This biome stores enormous quantities of carbon.

            This gift of nature must be well protected because this is very essential in maintaining ecological balance.

By: Monique Jade Salisipan